Porsche Sued Over Paul Walker Crash

After the crash that killed Paul Walker in Hollywood, Porsche is being sued by the wife of fellow victim Roger Rodas.

Both Roger Rodas and Paul Walker were killed in a November 2013 crash, when the 2005 Porsche Carrera GT in which they were driving crashed into a light pole in Valencia, California.

Following the fiery collision, it was determined that the vehicle was traveling at 94 miles an hour before the crash — which the newly filed suit alleges may have been due to vehicle malfunction.

Kristine Rodas, widow of Roger, is suing Porsche Cars North America for unspecified damages relating to the fatal accident. Mark Geragos, a lawyer for Rodas, says investigators he hired to examine the crash scene disputed claims that Rodas was driving at an unsafe speed — and that a mechanical error was the cause of the high-speed accident.

The suit outlines Rodas’ complaints, which include product liability, breach of implied warranty, violation of California consumer protection laws, and wrongful death. In part, it alleges that a mechanical defect, and not unsafe speeding, caused the crash and subsequent deaths of Rodas and Walker:

“The Carrera GT was unsafe for its intended use by reason of defects in its manufacture, design, testing, component and constituents, so that it would not safely serve its purpose.”

The Los Angeles Times paraphrases the filing, which describes an alternate set of events prior to the crash that killed Paul Walker:

“The lawsuit contends that the right rear tire suddenly steered to the left and that despite the efforts of Rodas, a veteran race car driver, the vehicle continued a clockwise movement before climbing the curb, swiping a tree and then hitting a light pole and a second tree… The car then hit a third tree on the passenger side, causing the vehicle to split and catch fire.”

The Hollywood Reporter notes that while the filing contests original investigative findings following the crash, the involvement of Porsche in the initial investigation is part of that objection:

“Kristine Rodas’ attorney, Mark Geragos, stated that the investigators he hired to evaluate the wreckage and the scene refute the claim that it was speeding at 94 mph at the time of the collision… The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and California Highway Patrol released the results of their inquiry in March, concluding that it was speed rather than mechanics that caused the accident. However, engineers from Porsche aided the investigation and evaluation of the wreckage.”

Porsche has not commented on the suit brought following the Paul Walker crash.

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